


The Hunt

by ThisIsMyDesignHannibal



Category: Hannibal (TV)
Genre: FannibalFest, FannibalFest2018, Fluff, Hannibal Lecter Loves Will Graham, Holding Hands, Hunters & Hunting, Implied Sexual Content, Kissing, M/M, Murder, Murder Husbands, Nudity, Post-Episode: s03e13 The Wrath of the Lamb, Post-Fall (Hannibal), Post-Season/Series 03, Prompt Fic, Romance, Scars, True Love, Will Graham Loves Hannibal Lecter, of people
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-21
Updated: 2018-10-21
Packaged: 2019-08-05 12:54:13
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,126
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16368026
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThisIsMyDesignHannibal/pseuds/ThisIsMyDesignHannibal
Summary: Hannibal and Will revel in the beauty of a shared hunt. The lush tropical night and a moonlit beach seem a perfect back-drop for them to wash themselves of their kill and ponder what they mean to each other.This fic was written for the FannibalFest FanBook, as a prompt-fill for their Gold Tier Kickstarter Backers. IronMegan's prompt was  "Hannigram out hunting, then pondering the meaning of love over a fresh kill."





	The Hunt

**Author's Note:**

  * For [IronMegan](https://archiveofourown.org/users/IronMegan/gifts).



> Enormous thanks to my amazing beta [fragile-teacup](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mrs_Gene_Hunt/pseuds/fragile-teacup) !

 

 

While every hunt varies, the prey retains its essential nature. Whether it knows it or not, it has been marked, chosen, cut from the herd.

This one knows it. The acrid stink of fear, the clumsy crashing steps; bone and muscle, blood and breath... all trail behind it like breadcrumbs for the senses, begging to be chased.

Dim streets give way to the deep dark of forest undergrowth, lush in the tropical heat. The rhythmic rise and fall of ocean waves belies the beach beyond, a gentle counternote to the chorus of cicadas whirring their worship to the night.

Panic has driven their quarry to ground, desperate for a shadow even darker than that of the ones who stalk it. But the moon is full, lighting their way.

Hannibal carefully places his steps in the hollows left by Will’s feet. A dance, one step removed. He is the shadow of a shadow. This is the game within the game; hunt and be hunted, see and be seen. He revels in the tether between them, the tension singing as Will looks back over his shoulder, drawing him on.

He is long past pretending that he would not follow this man to the ends of the earth, no longer interested in the pretense that he has not been profoundly changed. The memory of old denial is almost baffling in its blindness. His very cells feel like they have shifted their vibrations to echo the other’s. Resonance, building like a great wave; the cataclysm of their union enough to shift the world on its axis.

_Let the world shake. Amen._

He lets out a low chuckle, just so he can see Will look back at him once again. His eyes are bright in the dark, pupils blown black, arousal and bloodlust just two sides of the same coin. Need is need, after all, and Hannibal would gladly fulfil every one.

The heedless, crashing flight of their quarry has stopped, but the silence speaks volumes. They can both hear it, that hole punched in the verdant sounds of the night, as if the wilderness acknowledges their violence as its own and shows them the way.  

He can smell Will’s excitement, so pure now without the bitterness of guilt. Will is the one who has judged and condemned their prey, and his righteousness is incandescent. Hannibal closes the distance between them, pressing close to feel the kinetic coil of his muscles, thrumming under his palms; feels Will shiver as he breathes him in.

Will turns in his arms, eyes catching in the dark, words unnecessary. It’s time. The world has contracted to just them and the one they stalk. They are one predator with two beating hearts. Conjoined.

They move to circle, to flank, hands catching briefly as they pull apart; closing in, in perfect sync. This is the dance.

This is not his kill, nor Will’s…  

_It is ours._

They leap together.

Each are now master and muse, participant and observer, artist and inspiration. Each kill is now a cooperative masterpiece, the design of two. Each strike a revelation, every fluid cut its own joyful narrative; the poetry of wrath written in blood and strangled gasps. Each of Will’s strikes begins to feel like one of his own; true reciprocity echoed back at him as they find each other’s eyes in the dark, over and over again.

They see each other. They _are_ each other.

_Love. This is love._

Triumphant, Will reaches out for him in the dark, blood black in the moonlight. They crash together, the coppery sheen of blood on their lips. They are never able to make it very far... after.

Eventually they untangle, coming back to themselves, spent and satiated. Soft touches contrast the savagery of everything that has come before. Hand in hand, they walk the short distance to the beach, allowing the ocean to wash the hunt from their skin before stretching out on cool sand, the moonlight clothing them in silver and shadow.

Will’s cheek rests hot on Hannibal’s chest. His words are almost lost to the waves, whispered close against his skin.

“No one can be fully aware of another human being unless we love them.”

Hannibal says nothing, but tilts Will’s face up to his own, eyes connecting in the dark, a silent question.

“You said that to me in a dream once. A long time ago. I suppose it was really me saying it to myself… but I never forgot. It just… wasn’t something I was ready to hear at the time.”

“Our unconscious mind often whispers to us in the dark, revealing to us what we truly desire, even before we are willing to face it.”

Will props himself up on one elbow, a smile quirking at the corner of his mouth.

“I believe I had you tied to a tree and was slowly strangling you. I suppose my mind was admitting to more than just love.”

He dips down to kiss at faint bruises already blooming around Hannibal’s neck, heady evidence of their animalistic release. He relaxes back down, soft against his chest, one finger absently tracing the veins on one of Hannibal’s hands.

“You see me, Hannibal. And I see you. But when we hunt together… it goes so far beyond _awareness…_ I feel like we’re sliding into each other’s skin. It’s like we’re one person.”

Even now they press against each other, bodies entwined so there is no space between them.

“The origin of love,” Hannibal whispers into curls still damp from the ocean.

Now it is Will’s turn to look up at him, a wry smile on his face.

“The Platonic ideal? Two halves of the same whole? So then, are these the marks of separation or reunification?”

Soft fingers ghost over the scars on Hannibal’s forearm, down to the one on his side. Hannibal reaches between them to trace across Will’s stomach in turn, feels him shiver.

“Who’s to say love is gentle, Will? Perhaps it is only right that our reunion was as vicious as when the gods ripped us apart? Our scars bear witness to the violence of stitching ourselves back together. And now that we are...”

“Doubtful either of us would survive separation.”

“True love is a rare gift, Will. Most spend their lives hunting for it without success. Perhaps it is only appropriate that a successful hunt is what reveals to us the full depth of our triumph.”

Will looks thoughtful, a soft but playful smile on his lips. He leans in to capture Hannibal’s mouth, the kiss long and deep, stealing his breath, breaking only to whisper hot and close in his ear, that smile still lingering in his voice.

“Well then, _love_ , perhaps another celebration is in order.”

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> As always, THANK YOU FOR READING! Kudos and friendly comments are magical, and you are magical for leaving them! 
> 
> I just wanted to say how incredible FannibalFest2 was! I was so proud to be asked to write for their FanBook and speak on their writers panel with some incredible writers I truly love! I know not everyone can come to Cons, but it really is a great experience, and as always filled me with love for my wonderful Fannibal Family <333 
> 
> Come flail at me about Hannibal on [Tumblr](https://thisismydesignhannibal.tumblr.com/) !


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